Hatfield v UK

gentletull wrote: This is a good battle between 2 very short lived prog bands. I think Hatfield wins by a nose ;)

I think Hatfield wins by about 8 lengths

Admin speaking: This shouldn't be in prog polls, so I'll move it to the main lounge

This is a rather bizarre comparison, concidering Hatfield and UK are completely different bands. Anyway Hatfield are my favorite band and i naturaly would go with them. Im listening to UK and i must say, they pull off the whole 'technique-orientated' thing better than anyone else. Also, i love the way that they make music in the style of Yes and Crimson, yet in a way that you can  still tell its 1978. I love all those polyphonic synths. anyway, i digress.

UK; Brilliant

Hatfield; unrivalled

          Actually, these bands DID have one thing in common that sets them apart from many famous prog bands: there was no leader or mastermind.  Every member was on equal footing.  I think this situation worked better for Hatfield, perhaps because of the style of music they did.  UK, much like Asia, was a supergroup full of great musicians, but the resulting music really never had a unique identity other than being "proggy".  You got a little of everything.  In addition, none of the members of UK were top-notch songwriters; I wouldn't call them "sidemen", but I'd say they had their best moments performing music written by someone else.  It's easy to be impressed when listening to UK's albums, but it's mainly because of the musicianship, arrangements and production.  Hatfield's music transcends that level, I think....  the music's not similar to Gentle Giant's, but the same alchemy is present.  The sum is greater than the parts.  I'm a bit pissed at UK, admittedly; they damaged my hearing back in 1978.  They hit that bass synth note from "In The Dead of Night", and my skull started vibrating.  I saw a lot of other people covering their ears, too, and it just wasn't doing any good!  The venue was too small, and the ceiling too low for such a wall of sound...